As the holiday season draws nigh, shopping is on the minds of many. But should news outlets be the place to go to get gifts for your love ones?

You may have noticed that more and more news outlets have decided to diversify and begin selling everything from shoes to holiday cottages in a bid to raise funds. According to Nieman Lab, both the NYT and The Telegraph have wine shops, the later of which bills itself as "one of the UK's most respected wine merchants." Interestingly, this leading 'wine merchant', also sells concert tickets.

The Daily Mail has a section entitled "MailLife" that allows readers to browse through everything from discounted chrstmas-themed dinner services to DVD box sets.

The Guardian dedicates several areas of its site to shopping, including a bookshop and a garden center. It doesn't stop there though; the news paper also owns a popular dating site, named "Soulmates", where readers can attempt to find love. The newspaper also hosts a charity appeal in support of disadvantaged teenagers and young adults, where readers can give online in order to support the cause.

In terms of diversifying revenue streams, it would seem no-one in the news industry can outstrip magazine publisher Condé Naste, who developed an app that acts a Christmas gift registry for children.

For the looks of thing, it would seem that news organisations are increasingly becoming interested in selling more than just news.

Sources: The Daily Mail, The Guardian (1), (2), (3), (4), Nieman Lab (1), (2), The Telegraph